theheart.org: Brain, kidney and peripheral medical news

Brain/Kidney/Peripheral

Bypassing the blues: How simple collaborative care can help tackle depression after CABG surgery

Nov 16, 2009 18:45 EST

Depression after coronary artery bypass surgery is often overlooked by physicians but is associated with worse outcomes. A new US study illustrates a simple telephone-based approach to tackle this, with nurses encouraging patients to seek help from their primary-care doctors and providing ongoing feedback and review.

Orlando, FL - The first trial to examine the effectiveness of a collaborative-care strategy for treating depression after an acute cardiac event, in this case CABG, has shown this approach to be moderately successful, particularly among men [1].

Internist Dr Bruce L Rollman (University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, PA) reported the findings of the Bypassing the Blues study during a late-breaking clinical-trial presentation at the American Heart Association (AHA) 2009 Scientific Sessions; the results were published simultaneously in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Read full article »

heartbriefs

Sen Grassley questions top medical schools about ghostwriting

Nov 20, 2009 13:15 EST

As part of his mission to see more financial transparency in medicine, Sen Grassley has asked eight top US medical schools about their policies on ghostwriting.

Medscape Medical News

Stroke incidence related to PCI steady over 15 years

Nov 20, 2009 13:00 EST

Mayo Clinic researchers report that their stroke rate related to PCI has stayed steady for the last 15 years, something they interpret as good news, given that substantially older, sicker patients with more complex anatomy are now undergoing PCI.

News

EFFECT: Public reporting of hospital performance improves quality of care?

Nov 19, 2009 10:00 EST

Publicly released report cards based on hospital performance did not result in a measurably greater systemwide improvement in two composite AMI or CHF process-of-care indicators in a Canadian study. But they did appear to stimulate some important changes in delivery of care that could have led to some better outcomes.

Acute Coronary Syndromes

ACC/AHA focused update of guidelines for STEMI, PCI

8 COMMENTS - Nov 18, 2009 09:00 EST

The latest evidence for the treatment of STEMI and PCI has been incorporated into a fast-track update of US guidelines. But questions remain about the quality of some of the evidence informing the guidelines and about the composition of the writing committees.

Medscape Medical News

RE-LY: Post hoc analysis confirms benefit of dabigatran relative to warfarin at all INR levels

Nov 17, 2009 16:30 EST

A new analysis confirms that regardless of INR control achieved across participating centers, dabigatran remained noninferior at the lower dose and superior at the higher dose to warfarin for prevention of stroke and systemic embolism.

Heart failure

HEAAL: High-dose trumps low-dose ARB for heart failure in the ACE-inhibitor intolerant

1 COMMENT - Nov 17, 2009 08:15 EST

UPDATED WITH COMMENTARY // The randomized trial, which compared losartan dosages of 150 mg/day and 50 mg/day, "makes a strong case for the value of incremental inhibition of the renin-angiotensin system," its authors say.

Heart failure

FAIR-HF: Symptom improvement, functional gains follow correction of iron deficiency in heart failure

2 COMMENTS - Nov 17, 2009 08:00 EST

UPDATED WITH COMMENTARY // The randomized, placebo-controlled study's intriguing wrinkle: the benefits after 24 weeks of treatment with an injectable form of iron were independent of whether the patients were anemic.

Interventional/Surgery

Postop anemia in high-CV-risk patients: No CV gains from fixed hemoglobin target in trial

Nov 16, 2009 17:45 EST

A randomized trial found no protection from in-hospital cardiovascular events with a strategy of blood transfusions to maintain hemoglobin above 10 g/dL, compared with a more conservative approach to transfusion therapy, in patients with CV disease or risk factors who underwent hip surgery.

Medscape Medical News

SGR repair bill failure could cool physician support for healthcare reform

Nov 12, 2009 15:00 EST

Now that the US House of Representatives has passed a healthcare reform bill, organized medicine anticipates another vote—possibly next week—on a second bill that would rewrite Medicare's controversial sustainable-growth-rate formula for physician reimbursement.

Interventional/Surgery

ASTRAL finds no benefit of revascularization over medical therapy alone for renal-artery stenosis

9 COMMENTS - Nov 11, 2009 17:00 EST

Percutaneous revascularization of atherosclerotic renal arteries improves patency, but its benefits on renal function have been evaluated only in small studies. The 806-patient ASTRAL trial found no evidence of benefit from revascularization.

News

What's going to be hot at AHA 2009?

2 COMMENTS - Nov 11, 2009 09:00 EST

Anticipation is building for full trial results from ARBITER 6-HALTS, plus a better understanding of what went wrong with cangrelor in the CHAMPION trials. Also in the lineup are updates from PLATO, RE-LY, ALLHAT, BARI 2D, STICH, CASCADE, POPULAR, HEARTMATE II, and many more. Indeed, this year's "late-breaking" sessions include more than 30 trials over five days.

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Editorial Programs

The Cardiology Show

The AHA 2009 Roundup: ARBITER 6-HALTS, PLATO, the two CHAMPIONs, and CASCADE

1 COMMENT - Nov 18, 2009 16:30 EST

Join Drs Valentin Fuster, Roger Blumenthal, Bob Harrington, Judith Hochman, Sanjay Kaul, Suzanne Oparil, Gregg Stone, Lynne Warner Stevenson, and Bruce Wilkoff as they discuss the results of ARBITER 6-HALTS, the PLATO STEMI subanalysis, the two CHAMPIONs, and CASCADE and tackle the issue of too little, too soon in clinical trials today.

Editorial series

Clinical research: Comparing regulatory pathways in US and UK

Oct 30, 2009 12:35 EDT

How do regulatory pathways differ in the US and UK? Drs Harrington, Bhatt, and Cleland share their experiences and offer insight on how to support innovative research.

Editorial series

Afib treatment: The five-year plan

Oct 23, 2009 10:40 EDT

Dr Melissa Walton-Shirley talks to Dr Nassir Marrouche about the results of RE-LY, the impact of dronedarone on the treatment of atrial fibrillation, and his hopes for the future of MRI-guided ablation.

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